17 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love

By Nina Friend
Updated November 13, 2018
Christina Holmes
Love it or hate it, blue cheese adds an undeniable punch of flavor to salads, sandwiches, pastas, and pizzas. And eating it in a recipe, as opposed to on its own, is a great gateway for learning to appreciate blue cheese if you typically stay away. Here are our favorite ways to use the notoriously controversial, but in our opinion, wonderfully pungent cheese.
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Grilled Summer Squash with Blue Cheese and Pecans

Credit: Eva Kolenko
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Who says blue cheese is only for winter salads? This dish from chef Vivian Howard pairs the cheese with summer squash and lemony dressing.

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17 Blue Cheese Recipes Even Haters Will Love

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Spicy Steak Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing

Credit: Tina Rupp
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Chef David Burke adds in quail eggs to this steak and blue cheese salad, but regular chicken eggs will do the trick, too.

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Macaroni and Cheese with Bacon and Blue Cheese

Credit: Kate Winslow
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Bring the most unique mac and cheese to the picnic with this blue cheese twist on the classic.

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Blue-Cheese-and-Walnut Dip with Waldorf Crudités

Credit: David Malosh
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Basically a deconstructed Waldorf salad, this dip makes for a fun addition to a dinner party appetizer spread.

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Iceberg Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing

Credit: Quentin Bacon
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Whether you make your own mayonnaise, like chef Donald Link, or use mayo bought from the store, this blue cheese dressing will make you actually start to crave salad.

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Broccoli with Bacon, Blue Cheese and Ranch Dressing

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There’s bacon and cheese but there’s also broccoli, making this dish a great balance of healthy and not-as-healthy.

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BLT Salad with Blue Cheese

Credit: David Nicolas
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Chef Michael Schwartz’s breadless BLT is also mayo-less. He subs in blue cheese for that necessary fatty component.

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Bacon-and-Romaine Skewers with Blue Cheese Dressing

Credit: Jody Horton
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This fun party appetizer comes from chef Jason Holmes, who turns classic wedge salad into something that’s both playful and portable.

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Rosemary Flatbread with Blue Cheese, Grapes and Honey

Credit: Dana Gallagher
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This rosemary flatbread is both fluffy and crusty, and the blue cheese — which goes from crumbly to creamy in the oven — melts in your mouth.

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Celery Root with Apples, Walnuts and Blue Cheese

Credit: Frances Janisch
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This winter salad from Food & Wine 1996 Best New Chef Maria Helm Sinsky has just the right amount of nuttiness, juiciness, and toastiness.

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Chopped Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing

Credit: Quentin Bacon
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To dress this chopped salad, cheese expert Laura Werlin whisks blue cheese into a vinaigrette of Dijon mustard, sherry vinegar, and olive oil.

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Chicken Quesadillas with Blue Cheese and Caramelized Onions

Credit: Lucy Schaeffer
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Melissa Clark’s tangy twist on chicken quesadillas will leave you wondering how you’ve never tried this dish with blue cheese.

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Autumn Salad with Figs and Blue Cheese

Credit: Christina Holmes
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Mimi Thorisson’s mesclun salad is sweetened with figs, apples, and grapes yet still maintains acidic and spicy flavors from the apple cider vinegar and whole-grain mustard.

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Grilled Potato and Onion Salad with Blue Cheese and Bacon

Credit: Fredrika Stjärne
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This summer, instead of making the same old potato salad as always, try out this blue cheese and bacon version where the potatoes are grilled long enough to develop beautiful char marks.

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Firecracker Shrimp with Blue Cheese Dressing

Credit: Madeleine Hill
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Leave it to Andrew Zimmern to cook up the ultimate football season (or any season, if you ask us) comfort food: fried shrimp dunked in blue cheese dressing.

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Chicken Salad with Blue Cheese and Grapes

Credit: Grace Parisi
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This light chicken salad is best served — and eaten! — when wrapped in Bibb lettuce leaves, though it’s also great spread onto crackers or eaten straight out of the bowl.

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Beet & Blue Cheese Salad

Credit: Christina Holmes
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Chef Nicolaus Balla beet and blue cheese salad, made with scallions, herbs, and red wine, is bright and sweet.

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